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Major Online Dating Sites to Start Background Checks on Users

Match.com, eHarmony and Sparks Networks (operator of JDate and ChristianMingle) will scan the histories of possible clients for sexual assault, identity theft and violence before allowing them access to their fee-based sites.

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Single on Valentine’s Day? Five Phrases to Take Off Your Online Dating Profile Now

NewsFeed asked Grant Langston, eHarmony’s senior director of social media and advice blog coordinator, to walk us through the most overused phrases on online dating profiles.

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Can Your Smelly Shirt Land You a Better First Date?

The days of toiling over perfecting online-dating profiles may be over. All you may need is a sense of smell.

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Need Backup at the Bar? You Can Now Hire a Wingman

Forget online dating. Just fork over some cash for some much-needed pickup help.

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First Date ‘From Hell’: Woman Forced to Drive Getaway Car After Date Commits Robbery

A woman on a first date was tricked into becoming a getaway driver after her date robbed a betting shop in Wales. And you thought you had dating horror stories. (via The Sun)

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Reading While Eating for August 19: Potpourri

Friday’s links offer a little bit of this, and a sprinkling of that. Happy almost weekend!

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Search for Woman Missing in Aruba Echoes Natalee Holloway Case

Another U.S. woman has disappeared while traveling in Aruba.

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After Facebook Romance Goes Downhill, Woman Sues Ex

A Michigan woman is suing her long-distance love saying he ended their relationship for another woman. How much is a broken heart worth? Apparently, $8,368.88.

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Survey: Women Who Use ‘Guy Humor’ Get All the Guys

What do guys want? Themselves, apparently.

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Unlucky Date: Online Dating Prank Fails to Form ‘Involuntary Flashmob’

Call it the curse of Friday the 13th. A few poor online daters were conned into showing up to non-existent dates. But at the core, the joke was on the organizers.